April Lady

This was a lot like The Convenient Marriage. Older man becomes smitten with young, naive girl and marries her. Comedy ensues. Just as in that novel, the conflicts can be saved by the couple having an honest conversation. Just communicate, couples! If you don’t, ridiculous things happen!

I think it’s fine if these heroines are charming, over the top and even a tad silly at times, but I get impatient if they are not particularly intelligent or practical.

I was indifferent to all the characters in this novel. A lot of them blurred together with other Heyer novel characters. I’ve been reading too many of these books, but they do have this weird addictive quality.

Read June 21-22nd 2012.

The Unknown Ajax

This Heyer novel is distinct in the others I have read in that it featured a lot more of the servants and their relationships between themselves and their masters. The novel also had a plot about smuggling and free trade. I only found these parts interesting because they were new aspects of Heyer
but not actually that fascinating for most of the novel until the very end.

This was more serious and in a way, less of a romantic comedy than the others. I did like the romance in this novel though. It was believable as well as enjoyable. Hugo is a wonderful and lovely character. He had a wicked sense of humor

I know a Heyer novel is good when I want more of the characters by the end. I enjoyed this one. Maybe not as much as The Grand Sophy, but I liked Hugo almost as much as I did Sophy.

Read June 26-27th 2012.